Friday, June 17, 2016

Nashik ~ of Vineyards and Farmhouses

Posing after meditation!

Some travel experiences are so special because so many things come together which normally would not. The people, the place, life situations, state of mind. I think the best is when you get to experience connectedness to your self.

Just like millions of other places on earth, there is enough "nature" to explore in Nashik. Other than the regular stuffs like picturesque vistas, weather (thank you nashik for not being humid on me), food, joy bike rides, selfies, engaging with locals, navigating various negotiations - some other things were very profound for me on this trip. Many of my trips/travels are amazing and profound. Even weekend visits to pavna with my friends is actually very nurturing for me. Except this time, i actually sat my ass down to write about it. I intend to write on every trip/ travel i make. Lets see.

Transforming the anxiety of being alone.. to a powerful "space of allowing".. where undeserving kindness is showered upon!

I usually get a feeling of anxiety when i start a trip. Usually about.. will it be fun? Aam i forgetting something? Should i can cancel and go back to regular life? Do i have enough batteries? Is there anything that i didn't complete and so on. Over that, the bus guy seemed like he over priced me (which he didn't, as i learnt later). Anyways, i know these triggers by now so i knew that i would slowly settle in and go with flow. So my current favorite spiritual teacher (Teal Swan at the moment) and started drifting off. And Ofcourse it worked.

If you know anything about local bus travels, you would know if you book ticket last minute, you will get 1. the last seat (which is pretty bad), 2. Nobody would be willing to exchange it. These days i am very interested in pushing social boundaries. I made friends with some random guy and was talking to him. Despite the fear of rejection, at one point i asked him do you want to switch, and he readily agreed! Wow. Thats fantastic. Over and above that, the old man sitting next to me offered his hotspot and allowed me to access internet. A simple lesson to relate to people beyond their sterotypes and actually connecting with people can make lots of difference.

Real connection. Joy and feeling loved.

Immersed in her train of thought, Michelle oblivious to me taking selfie

Not superficial. But real conversations. when you can be authentic with someone and have real conversation about something.

Do you know how amazing it feels to be with someone?

who has commitment towards being authentic Vs being liked?

who is ready to listen Vs competing to talk

who is as comfortable being lazy as in action mode all the time

who has faced their demons Vs perpetually living a "safe" life

Let me tell you. It is so freeing to be around some one. Everything you explore with such a company is beautiful. In my experience, all the international travelers are like that. Thank you michelle! It was such a delight to do this little travel with you.

Schedule free living Go-with-the-flow living

It recently dawned upon me that humans are not made to be productive. We are here to enjoy various dimensions of life. As a manifestation of various levels of playfulness, we created calender and to-do list. Even though i am a fairly productive guy, i actually let go and just did what my heart wanted. If it told me to be lazy, i was. If it told me to dance, i did. If it told me to lie down, i did. If it told me to cuddle, i did.

I learnt to listen to my feelings better.

The best part was to just lay in the grass listening to coldplay and staring at stars. Although, i should admit, i did dance most of that time. I miss these lush forests, landscapes and parks in mumbai concrete jungle.

Always welcoming new connections

There are times in long bus rides when there is not enough juice in the mobile to listen to anything ~ you are left with just stream of thoughts and no social norms to adhere that disturbs the contemplative space.Pushing social behavioral boundaries

There is always a creep (or almost creep) in most of the travels. It is good to be and i am open and receptive to people in general who want to connect. But some how some creeps (whose intentions are beyond just enjoying conversations and crosses some boundaries) seep in through the cracks. In a ways, i like it. It helps me keep vigilant for me and my peeps. It is about straddling the thin line where you allowing them to be few things and not allowing them be in certain way around you! This is part of the package.

I'd call it a travel experience rather than just a vacation because both are about mindset. I like traveler mindset more. Vacation, for me, implies lazing about and indulging (not that anything wrong with that) , but i am very active during my travels as much as (if not more) my daily life.

Navigating through the good and the bad locals

There are some local folks who are genuinely interested in connecting and there are some who are out to extract maximum out of you! Negotiating your way through it is a skill that i learnt by making enough mistakes in life. I am OK with that. Cant be protected all the time. I started to enjoy the vulnerable and gullible side of me. I have lots of respect for female solo travellers even more!The Farm House

Sula Vineyards

PS:Best way to choose partner/ friend in life is to travel with them. Not as a tourist, but as a traveller. It reveals the good, bad and the ugly of both to each other and helps deciding if its a good match for each other!

3 comments:

Wow! This is well written. like the way you express your thoughts and choice of words ( about the anxiety and letting go and schedules). Anyone who travels with you is sure to get value ...be it fun or some new experience or exploring their limitation 'awesomeness' :-) :-) - saying it from my experience traveling with you to Dharamshala!!